Recommendations based on The Art of the Novelby Milan Kundera

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. A Moveable Feast

    by Ernest Hemingway
    A memoir of Hemingway's life in 1920s Paris, exploring its rich bohemian culture.

    Hemingway's memories of his life as an unknown writer living in Paris in the twenties are deeply personal, warmly affectionate, and full of wit. Looking back not only at his own much younger self, ... (Goodreads)

  2. The History of Sexuality, Volume 1: An Introduction

    by Michel Foucault
    Examination of the power dynamics and social constructions of sexual behavior.

    Michel Foucault offers an iconoclastic exploration of why we feel compelled to continually analyze and discuss sex, and of the social and mental mechanisms of power that cause us to direct the ... (Goodreads)

  3. A Short History of Nearly Everything

    by Bill Bryson
    A captivating overview of the natural sciences, spanning the history of the universe.

    In Bryson's biggest book, he confronts his greatest challenge: to understand—and, if possible, answer—the oldest, biggest questions we have posed about the universe and ourselves. Taking as territory ... (Goodreads)

  4. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

    by Jared Diamond
    Tracing the origins of human civilizations through the lens of geography, technology, and biology.

    "Diamond has written a book of remarkable scope ... one of the most important and readable works on the human past published in recent years." Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and a national bestseller: ... (Goodreads)

  5. Critique of Pure Reason

    by Immanuel Kant
    Exploration of the limits of human reason and its limitations in understanding nature.

    'The purpose of this critique of pure speculative reason consists in the attempt to change the old procedure of metaphysics and to bring about a complete revolution', Kant's Critique of Pure Reason ... (Goodreads)

  6. Philosophical Investigations

    by Ludwig Wittgenstein
    Wittgenstein's exploration of language and meaning, challenging traditional philosophical concepts and proposing new ways of understanding language games.

    Philosophical Investigations, ( German : Philosophische Untersuchungen ) is a work by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein . The book was published posthumously in 1953. Wittgenstein discusses ... (Wikipedia)

  7. On the Genealogy of Morals

    by Friedrich Nietzsche
    Exploration of morality, power, and the origin of human values.

    On the Genealogy of Morals (1887) is a book about the history of ethics and about interpretation. Nietzsche rewrites the former as a history of cruelty, exposing the central values of the ... (Goodreads)

  8. The Dhammapada

    by Anonymous
    A collection of Buddhist teachings and wisdom, focusing on the path to enlightenment.

    The Dhammapada (Pāli; Prakrit: धम्मपद Dhammapada; Sanskrit: धर्मपद Dharmapada) is a collection of sayings of the Buddha in verse form and one of the most widely read and best known Buddhist ... (Goodreads)

  9. Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics

    by Tim Marshall
    Geopolitical exploration of global events and the impact of geography on politics.

    In the bestselling tradition of Why Nations Fail and The Revenge of Geography , an award-winning journalist uses ten maps of crucial regions to explain the geo-political strategies of the world ... (Goodreads)

  10. Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting

    by Robert McKee
    A comprehensive guide to the craft and principles of successful screenwriting.

    Robert McKee's screenwriting workshops have earned him an international reputation for inspiring novices, refining works in progress and putting major screenwriting careers back on track. Quincy ... (Barnes & Noble)

  11. The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays

    by Albert Camus
    Philosophical essays on the absurd human condition, questioning the value of life.

    One of the most influential works of this century, this is a crucial exposition of existentialist thought. Influenced by works such as Don Juan, and the novels of Kafka, these essays begin with a ... (Goodreads)

  12. Orientalism

    by Edward W. Said
    Exploration of the Middle East through the West's prejudiced lens.

    More than three decades after its first publication, Edward Said's groundbreaking critique of the West's historical, cultural, and political perceptions of the East has become a modern classic. In ... (Goodreads)

  13. Plato: Complete Works

    by Plato
    Collection of ancient Greek philosopher Plato's dialogues, discussing morality, knowledge and truth.

    Outstanding translations by leading contemporary scholars–many commissioned especially for this volume--are presented here in the first single edition to include the entire surviving corpus of works ... (Barnes & Noble)

  14. Democracy in America

    by Alexis de Tocqueville
    A study of the political and social structure of the United States and its implications.

    Democracy in America has had the singular honor of being even to this day the work that political commentators of every stripe refer to when they seek to draw large conclusions about the society of ... (Goodreads)

  15. The Trial and Death of Socrates

    by Plato
    A philosophical dialogue into the life and death of the philosopher Socrates.

    Plato is among the most influential philosophers of all time. Along with his teacher Socrates and his pupil Aristotle, he can be said to have laid the foundations for Western philosophy, science and ... (Goodreads)

  16. Beyond Good and Evil

    by Friedrich Nietzsche
    A philosophical exploration of morality and truth, challenging conventional morality and religious beliefs.

    Friedrich Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil is translated from the German by R.J. Hollingdale with an introduction by Michael Tanner in Penguin Classics. Beyond Good and Evil confirmed Nietzsche's ... (Goodreads)

  17. Running Lean: Iterate from Plan A to a Plan That Works

    by Ash Maurya
    A practical guide to building a successful startup by testing and iterating ideas to find a sustainable business model.

    We live in an age of unparalleled opportunity for innovation. We’re building more products than ever before, but most of them fail—not because we can’t complete what we set out to build, but because ... (Goodreads)

  18. Naked

    by David Sedaris
    Collection of humorous essays exploring the absurdities of everyday life.

    Welcome to the hilarious, strange, elegiac, outrageous world of David Sedaris. In Naked , Sedaris turns the mania for memoir on its proverbial ear, mining the exceedingly rich terrain of his life, ... (Goodreads)

  19. Slouching Towards Bethlehem

    by Joan Didion
    Collection of essays exploring the cultural landscape of 1960s America.

    The first nonfiction work by one of the most distinctive prose stylists of our era, Joan Didion's Slouching Towards Bethlehem remains, decades after its first publication, the essential portrait of ... (Goodreads)

  20. The 20th Century Art Book

    by Phaidon Press
    A comprehensive guide to the most influential artists of the 20th century, featuring their most iconic works and biographical information.

    Covering the international nature of the modern art scene, this title encompasses established, iconic works of art and the classics of the future. It presents 500 artists in an alphabetical order, ... (Goodreads)

  21. The Prince

    by Niccolò Machiavelli
    A timeless political treatise on the art of acquiring and maintaining power.

    Machiavelli needs to be looked at as he really was. Hence: Can Machiavelli, who makes the following observations, be Machiavellian as we understand the disparaging term? 1. So it is that to know the ... (Goodreads)

  22. My Dog: The Paradox: A Lovable Discourse about Man's Best Friend

    by Matthew Inman
    A humorous and heartwarming comic book about the joys and challenges of owning a dog.

    Matthew Inman dishes another helping of hilarity from his online comic The Oatmeal in My Dog: The Paradox . After years of carefully observing his own dog, Rambo, Inman follows his #1 New York Times ... (Goodreads)

  23. Inner Engineering: A Yogi's Guide to Joy

    by Sadhguru
    A guide to achieving inner peace and joy through yoga and meditation, with practical advice for daily life.

    NEW YORK TIMES, BESTSELLER • Thought leader, visionary, philanthropist, mystic, and yogi Sadhguru presents Western readers with a time-tested path to achieving absolute well-being: the classical ... (Goodreads)

  24. The Collected Schizophrenias: Essays

    by Esmé Weijun Wang
    A collection of essays exploring the author's experiences with mental illness and the societal stigma surrounding it.

    An intimate, moving book written with the immediacy and directness of one who still struggles with the effects of mental and chronic illness, The Collected Schizophrenias cuts right to the core. ... (Goodreads)

  25. The Lives of the Artists

    by Giorgio Vasari
    A collection of biographies of Italian Renaissance artists, revealing their lives, works, and techniques.

    Packed with facts, attributions, and entertaining anecdotes about his contemporaries, Giorgio Vasari's collection of biographical accounts also presents a highly influential theory of the development ... (Goodreads)

  26. Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling

    by Ross King
    An exploration of the artistic genius of Michelangelo, and the turbulent politics behind the Sistine Chapel.

    In 1508, despite strong advice to the contrary, the powerful Pope Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the newly restored Sistine Chapel. With little experience as a painter ... (Goodreads)

  27. Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

    by James Clear
    A practical guide to creating and maintaining good habits, and breaking bad ones, using small, incremental changes.

    No matter your goals, Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for improving–every day. James Clear, one of the world's leading experts on habit formation, reveals practical strategies that will teach ... (Goodreads)

  28. Living to Tell the Tale

    by Gabriel García Márquez
    Autobiographical account of the author's life, from his childhood to his Nobel Prize in Literature.

    He is perhaps the most acclaimed, revered and widely read writer of our time, and in this first volume of a planned trilogy, Gabriel Garcia Marquez begins to tell the story of his life. Living to ... (Goodreads)

  29. The Elements of Style

    by William Strunk Jr.
    A practical guide to written English, providing guidance on grammar and style.

    This style manual offers practical advice on improving writing skills. Throughout, the emphasis is on promoting a plain English style. This little book can help you communicate more effectively by ... (Goodreads)